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Thread: Mig Welder
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24th July 2009, 11:16 PM #1
Mig Welder
After a few decades of stick welding I finaly got around buying a new Mig welder.
Got a Cigweld Transmig 250 compact. Works a treat.
Now comes the question. So far only used it a few days on small stuff and plugged it in a 15 amp powerpoint I have in my powerboard.
Called the electrician to wire a 15AMP plug at the back in my shed.
Electrician asks to read the back of the machine and see what sort of current I need.
To my dismay this is what I found: There are two tables one for "190" amps and the other for "250" amps. On the 190 amp table it says that the lead and 15 amp plug supplied by factory is OK (thank you for that) and now, if you want to weld up to 250 amp, you must change the lead and plug to 35 amp
Are they serious?
This is like buying a car and be told that if you want to go more than 60KPH you have to change the wheels.
Rang my local electrical wholesaler and asked for a 35 amp powerpoint only to be told there is no such thing, only 32 or 40. Not a good start.
Now in 32 amp you have the domestic flat pin and the industrial line, round pin. Domestic is $39 dollars, industrial is $200. Considering I want also an extension lead, and I will need a powerpoint plus a plug for the machine plus another plug and a femal plug fort he extension lead I am already over $700, so as a hobby blacksmith, forget it, go domestic.
Now surprise surprise, they make powerpoints and plugs for 32 amp domestic flat pin but not female plug for an extension cord. So I now must build a lead with a male plug and a floor box with a wall powerpoint built in.
So what's the question?
Why on earth dont they supply the machine with the appropriate lead and plug to start with?“We often contradict an opinion for no other reason
than that we do not like the tone in which it is expressed.”
Friedrich Nietzsche
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24th July 2009 11:16 PM # ADSGoogle Adsense Advertisement
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24th July 2009, 11:39 PM #2Retired
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I've always loved this one, consider your self lucky you didn't go for the 275 it pulls around 45amps
They rate a machine at what ever its 100% duty cycle is so if your 250 will weld all day at say 180 amps then what ever the current draw at 180 amps is its rating even if you need 38 amps to weld at 250 amps
Ill check on monday which is the smallest effective fuse you can use with this machine if nobody else posts it by then
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24th July 2009, 11:52 PM #3
The circuit braker must be 50 amps to weld at full bore, 30 if welding at 190.
I understand the ratings of a welder but I have to join an I beam that is 10 mm thick in most parts and 12/13 in the corners so I will use 1.2 wire and a lot of juice. That is why I bought a 250 and not a 190. Yet I can not use my machine unless I actualy modify the factory supplied lead and plug? This is completely crazy. Had I "filed" the earth for the pitiful 15 amp plug they supply to plug it in a 10 amp socket I would void the warranty, yet it is ok for me to dismatle the machine and rewire it to over twice the size wire.
Makes a lot of sense.“We often contradict an opinion for no other reason
than that we do not like the tone in which it is expressed.”
Friedrich Nietzsche
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25th July 2009, 07:49 PM #4Senior Member
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Be thankful they even make such a powerful machine in 240v, normally its 3 phase or the highway
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25th July 2009, 10:28 PM #5
And to follow up on my own post even when the manufacturer states a 50 amp "fuse" it is illegal to have a 50 amp circuit braker on a 32 amp powerpoint. Its 32 and 32 if I need a 50 amp CB I need a 50 amp power plug.
I see if I get away with a 32 amp power point and a 40 amp circuit braker. If it trips the circuit Ill have to go full industrial. I've since found cheaper suppleirs of industrial stuff and then there is e-bay.“We often contradict an opinion for no other reason
than that we do not like the tone in which it is expressed.”
Friedrich Nietzsche
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25th July 2009, 10:42 PM #6Retired
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I've come across a lot of these machines and I haven't come across any problems that couldn't be fixed easily
I have one in my workshop at the moment Ill look at it on monday also speak to some people who use them,and get back then I don't think you have a major expense on your hands
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26th July 2009, 11:45 PM #7Pink 10EE owner
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I have the same machine except mine has the remote wire feeder....You do not need a 35 amp plug to run it flat out...I have put probably 100kg of welding wire through mine over several years and it has never been an issue..
As it is with the 15 amp lead fitted you will not get full amperage the machine is capable of..I have never found this to be an issue...On the 4/4 setting with a 15 amp lead fitted the machine still puts out enough heat to blow holes in 3mm plate...Only problem you will find is that when operating for extended periods in the 4/2-4/4 range you will blow the power point fuse...
Don't worry about the lead, plug it in and play...
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26th July 2009, 11:49 PM #8Electrician
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Hi Marc,
The following assumes that you do not have a distribution board in your shed.
You will need something like the following if you want the RCD at the outlet. These are examples only;
Switched Socket Outlet.
http://updates.clipsal.com/ClipsalOn...56SC432RC&ref=
Plug.
http://updates.clipsal.com/ClipsalOn...=40303&level=4
Circuit breaker.
http://updates.clipsal.com/ClipsalOn...=30001&level=4
Apart from the above information, do you plan to do this yourself or get a sparky?“I do not think there is any thrill that can go through the human heart like that felt by the inventor as he sees some creation of the brain unfolding to success... Such emotions make a man forget food, sleep, friends, love, everything.” - Nikola Tesla.
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27th July 2009, 05:34 PM #9
Yes, I thought it would be ok for medium size stuff and occasional use. I was a bit P/O because I have to extend 2 I beam by adding half a meter to each, and that is a bit on the heavy side. I thought rightly that if I buy a 250 amp machine I want to be able to use it as a 250 amp machine and the manufacturer tells me I can not.
Anyway, so far I got the sparky to wire a 32 amp domestic power powerpoint, no big deal those are cheap. Next is to make a 32 amp extension with a 32 amp domestic plug from HPM, the only I could find that makes this and a floor box (expensive) to have another 32 amp domestic p/p Wire to be determined, either 4 or 6 mm The floor box comes with two sides so I'll have two 15 amp p/p on the other side (may as well) to plug grinder drill etc.
Sent an e-mail to the factory in Victoria and still awayting reply. Also no reply from supplier in Sydney.
Elcangorito ( now there is a name), what are the prices for 3 pin 32 amp industrial p/point w/switch plus a plug, male and female in Thailand?“We often contradict an opinion for no other reason
than that we do not like the tone in which it is expressed.”
Friedrich Nietzsche
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27th July 2009, 08:32 PM #10Pink 10EE owner
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27th July 2009, 08:39 PM #11
That's good then.
I have a question though.
The roller for the wire feeder has two different size grooves.
On one side it's 0.6 and on the other side it's 0.8
However I got a roll of 0.9mm wire and was told it's ok to use 0.8 roller. Is this true or should I buy a 0.9 roller?“We often contradict an opinion for no other reason
than that we do not like the tone in which it is expressed.”
Friedrich Nietzsche
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27th July 2009, 08:43 PM #12Pink 10EE owner
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I dunno...Mine came with a 1.2/0.9 roller..
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27th July 2009, 08:47 PM #13
I may buy a 1.2 / 0.9 anyway since I need 1.2 wire to weld those I beams
“We often contradict an opinion for no other reason
than that we do not like the tone in which it is expressed.”
Friedrich Nietzsche
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27th July 2009, 08:48 PM #14Retired
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.9 is better but it will still work fine on mild and stainless steel wire
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27th July 2009, 09:00 PM #15Senior Member
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